Transcript Orchids - Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences

Orchids
By Lauren Wensel
Questions to Address….
• What are the different
pollinators used by
orchids?
• How does the Orchid
attract pollinators?
Different Types of Pollinators:
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Wingless Worker
Ants
Bees
Butterflies
Moths
Flies
Birds
Different Ways to Attract Pollinators
• Sexual deception
• Different fragrances
• Bright colors
Sexual Deception
• The Orchids can attract
the male wasps by
releasing a chemical,
which is similar to that
of a female
• Found in the
Australian Orchid,
Chiloglottis
Another use of Fragrances
• Some of the female bees
are attracted to the orchid
smell for a different
reason
• When they visit they
scratch and brush
themselves against the
flower to get the scent
• The bees collect the
fragrance and store it in
their hind tibiae
Why do the female Bees collect the
fragrance compound?
• They could use it for
metabolic reasons
• The Males attract
females with the scent
and then use their
territorial displays to
lure them in
• Males use the scent to
attract other males to a
mating site
Male Bees
• Diagram of male bee
Future Research….
• In the future I think it
would be interesting to
test which of the
different types of
pollinators are best for
orchid fertilization.
References
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Ackerman, J. D. “Specificity and Mutual Dependency of the Orchid- Euglossine Bee
Interaction”. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.1983. Vol. 20. pp. 301-314.
Beattie, A. J., Peakall, R. “ Pollination of the Orchid Microtis Parviflora R. Br. By
Flightless Worker Ants”. British Ecological Society. Vol. 3. No. 5. 1989. pp. 515- 522.
Calvo, Richard N. “ Evolutionary Demography of Orchids: Intensity and Frequency of
Pollination and the Cost of Fruiting”. Ecology. Vol. 74. No. 4. June 1993. pp. 10331042
Dobson, Calaway H., Dressler, Robert L., Hills, Harold G., Adams, Ralph M.,
Williams, Norris H. “ Biologically Active Compounds in Orchid Fragrances.” Science.
Vol. 164. No. 3885. 13 June 1969. pp. 1243- 1249
Nilsson, L. A. “ Orchid pollination Biology”. Trends in Ecology and Evolution. Vol. 7.
No.8. 1992. pp. 255-259
O’ Connell, Lisa M., Johnston, Mark O. “Male and Female Pollination Success in a
Deceptive Orchid, A Selection Study”. Ecology. Vol. 79. No.4. June 1998. pp. 12461260
Schiestl, Florian P., Peakall, Rod, Mant, Jim G., Ibarra, Fernando, Schulz, Claudia,
Franke, Stephan, Francke, Wittko. “The Chemistry of Sexual Deception in an OrchidWasp Pollination System”. Science. Vol. 302. 17 October 2003. pp. 437-438